While the Lakers are zooming into the playoffs on a high, the offseason will present a whole new set of questions for them to address.
A roster full of players set to enter free agency is some form or fashion will create the need for lots of decisions. Some of them are simple, like bringing back Austin Reaves, and others are out of their control, like where LeBron James wants to finish his career or what Deandre Ayton or Marcus Smart do with their options.
But there are still plenty of players the Lakers
will have to make a decision on, including a number of key contributors like Jaxson Hayes and Luke Kennard. Both are set for unrestricted free agency and, with lots of cap space, both could be brought back fairly easily.
In an article on Monday, Dave McMenamin of ESPN reported on a number of free agents the Lakers are interested in retaining this offseason.
The Lakers aren’t expected to take that $50 million and give it to another star instead of James. They have interest in re-signing Reaves, Jaxson Hayes and Luke Kennard, team sources told ESPN, not to mention Hachimura, if the price is right. Reaves will decline a $14.9 million player option and enter unrestricted free agency, sources familiar with his plans told ESPN.
When it comes to Reaves, the interest in mutual in getting a deal done and everything indicates that’ll be the case at some point this summer.
However, after that, it’ll be interesting to see how things unfold.
Hayes has found success this season and in general alongside Luka Dončić. On a minimum deal, he provides solid value. But, given how much success he’s had this year, has he played so well that he’ll earn more than the minimum next season? And if so, are the Lakers still interested in bringing him back?
Kennard has been a terrific addition to the team since the trade deadline, filling the need for shooting and a secondary ballhandler in many lineups. It feels unlikely he’d make more than the $11 million he made this year and feels possible he’d make less even. If that’s the case, it would make a lot of sense for LA to re-sign him.
Hachimura will be an interesting one. In LA, he’s developed into a sharpshooter and has value as a wing with size and shooting. The price point feels like the biggest factor in whether he comes back, as McMenamin noted.
All of the moving parts of this offseason will make this hard to predict. But the Lakers are going to have a lot of decisions to make.
You can follow Jacob on Twitter at @JacobRude or on Bluesky at @jacobrude.bsky.social.
